I just honestly found it such a slog to get through with all the primary sources. Not enough macrohistory with names and dates for me, just a lot of “here’s a story about how taxes were collected in the ilkhanate”
Spuler's book is a dry collection of passages taken from the accounts from Western, Chinese and Muslim sources that were written during the 13th and 14th centuries. Thus, there is a lack of cohesiveness and narrative, which can frustrate the general reader.
Intriguing and illuminating excerpts from contemporary sources, insufficiently annotated. It's interesting how much the "Secret History" outshines much of the rest of this material.